I. Field of Use
The present application relates to the field of digital networks. More specifically, the present application relates methods and apparatus for allowing disparate network nodes to communicate with each other.
II. Description of the Related Art
Home security systems have been around for years. Typically, these systems comprise a control unit in communication with one or more remote sensors, such as door/window sensors, motion detectors, tilt sensors, and so on. Communication between these devices may occur over one or more wired or wireless medium, or a combination of both, forming one or more digital networks.
A number of proprietary and open-source protocols exist that allow the various system components to communicate with one another. One such protocol that is popular today is known as the Z-wave protocol. The Z-wave protocol assigns one device as a “controller” and other devices as “slaves”. The controller may send commands to the slaves, requesting information or instructing them to perform a function. The commands sent by the controller and information sent by the slaves are sent as data packets that are defined by the Z-wave protocol. RF transmission occurs at 908 MHz
Generally, slave devices that operate using one protocol cannot communicate with a controller that uses a different protocol. This limitation may create problems for consumers who own controllers that use a particular communication protocol that wish to add a slave device that uses a different communications protocol. For example, a homeowner having a Z-wave-enabled controller may wish to add a driveway sensor to detect arrival and departures of vehicles to the homeowner's property. However, the driveway sensor is available using only the well-known Insteon protocol.
Thus, it would be desirable to be able to allow slave devices using one protocol to communicate with a controller that uses a different protocol.